Tribune News Network
Doha
The Public Works Authority (Ashghal) has completed eight pedestrian bridges on the streets of Najma, Al Khaleej, Al Istiqlal, Al Furousiya, Onaiza, Doha Express Highway, Al Wukair road and C-Ring Road.
These bridges are located in busy areas in the country. They serve Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium in Qatar Sports Club, Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Al Sadd Sports Club, and Hamad Bin Khalifa Stadium in Al Ahli Sports Club, which will be used as training stadiums during the FIFA World Cup 2022.
The Al Furousiya pedestrian bridge will serve the fans visiting Khalifa International Stadium as the bridge was designed to include pedestrians and cyclists to cross safely.
The bridges also serve the streets of Al Istiqlal, Onaiza, Al Furousiya, Doha Expressway, C-Ring Road, Al Khaleej, Najma and Al Wukair to serve the areas of Lejbailat, Onaiza, Muaither, Al Mirqab, Al Sadd, Fereej Bin Mahmood, Nuaija and Al Wakra.
Eng Faisal Al Qahtani from Buildings Project Department at Ashghal said the project consisted of eight completed bridges located in various lively areas in Qatar, adding that these areas were chosen because they were hotspots for pedestrian accidents in which they suffered high risks of being hit by cars.
Ashghal works on installing a number of bridges in different locations in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Interior.
He said, "Bridge construction projects aim to enhance the safety of pedestrians within the country’s plan to enhance traffic safety in different areas and to provide pedestrians with easy access to housing and commercial facilities nearby. We have also taken into consideration the needs of pedestrians, cyclists and those with special needs in terms of providing private paths and lifts.”
On his part, Eng Ahmad Al Mahmeed, Bridges Projects manager in Ashghal, said that with an aim to support local products, as 50 percent of the materials used, such as iron, steel, glass and other materials, were locally sourced.
He added that the bridges were designed with the highest standards of quality and safety and in accordance with national and international standards, as well as, aesthetic touches that were added during construction as some bridges’ design was inspired by Qatari heritage and FIFA 2022 World Cup that Qatar is hosting this year.
He also clarified how ‘Ashghal’ is following all safety precautions and providing safety procedures to workers in the project as they were able to complete over 2.530 million man-hours without injuries.
More work is underway to construct additional pedestrian bridges in other areas such as Industrial Area, Al Markhiya, Al Sadd, Al Shamal Road (Duhail), Al Muntazah Street and others, in order to provide safety for residents and citizens.